The Waco daily examiner. [volume] (Waco, Tex.) 187?-1888, 1887-08-13

TIE INVESTIGATIoS.
/ CHATswoBTH, LIS. August a. \;
the morning session of the coroner,
jury some decidedly ,gnlhcaut testi
mony was given. Timothy Coughlin
tie section foreman here, testified
/ that he nsd four Meu helping him on
his section of six snd one>hsli miles.
lie received order. on Wednesday to
20 over his section and see that the
bridge and track were all right.
Coughlin went 20 the east end OF the
section and burned The grass along
the track tor hsif mne and put
the fire ire out. He examined the
bridge about 5 o'clock and found no
smoke about IT, Otherwise ii was all
right. About three weeks ago the
grass had been cut away for ten feet
from the bridge timbers and he had no
idea how the bridge could have
caught fire. Christopher Ennis,
roadmaster for the line from the
state boundary to Peoria said he went
over the road Wednesday from Fair
burg to Gilman, lie passed over the
fatal bridge Just before : o clock IN the
afternoon. lie was on the rear end OF
the car and saw that the bridge wa,
all right. There was no fire or smoke.
Ennis said:
My opinion Is that the bridge was
set on fire by somebody. My train
was the last over before the special
and If there wa- fire there the men
would have discovered it. The bridge
could have been burned in two or
three hours. About three years ago
two attempts were made to ditch the
l o'clock passenger train at that
bridge and we kept watchmsn there
Tor six weeks. DISTRACTIONS were
piled on the track. II is very lone.
some pla G, far from any house
UGLY Of THE RAILWAY COMPANY.
CHICAGO August IA special
from Chst,wortl say. there were
very little stimulants or, in fact, med
ical appliances or assistance OF
any Kind on the grounds. \ man
from Piper Guy, whose naNe could
not be learned, brought demijo ohm
OF whisky, but the railroad people
seem to have done practically moth.
ing. Men from Chats worth, who
worked al night at the wreck,
were refused passage on the train
going back to the village sndhad to
tramp coming III in halt fainting
condition for something TO eat. 1t
seemed to take the ailwsy company
tour hours to get al engine ready TO
drag car 10 or from the village and
the only persons allowed to ride
were railroad officials People here
are very bitter against the railroad
company, and they say that the OF
iiciaIs whether from decentralization
or excitement or from absolute pig
bead dues, acted most luAumanly IN
many tas and treated the wounded
shameiully, In fact they did not treat
the wounded at all but
lett them TO the care Of volunteers
There was nothing - hinder the OIL
cials from running train, back and
forth eastward to Giln a. and west
ward - Chat,worth ali through the
night. carrying away tho wounded
and bringing back supplies, but Moth
ing OF the Kind was done. The whole
thing Is lu,t piece of stupidity that
allowed the prairie fires 10 rage all
along the line aud took no precautions
TO see that the bridges were not burn.
ed down. lis probable that the in.
vestigation will result in holding
some OF the officials crimina.y re
sponsiOle for the disaster
FIRST IMPRESSIONS.
FOREST, ILL.,, August II News Of
tho disaster arrived at Chats worth
about forty minutes after its occur
renee. Tie residents Of the little
town were suddenly awakened by IN
alarm which was rung simultaneously
from AL the boxes. In few moments
everybody was on his or her feet and
people were running through the
streets from all directions, all
enqultlug where the fire was.
when actual facts were
learned another alarm followed
which was soon vigorously followed
by the bells of all the churches. PEG.
pie made rush tor the road to Piper
City. pr, Vaughn, Of Chatsworth,
was the ilrst to appear At the scene
lie was seen by u reporter aud told
briefly
WHAT HE SAW,
"When | arrived found the great
est coniusion,' he said, "Hell itself
could net present more horrible
picture. Men and women lighting
with death and ready to clutch At
straws TO got ,aycd One man held
hi- desd wife aud dead little bhl!d on
his arms, while his own tcct We're
broken and caught in the wreck,